Word Origin & History

gag mid-15c., "to choke, strangle," possibly imitative or influenced by O.N. gaghals "with head thrown back." The sense of "stop a person's mouth" is first attested c.1500. Related: Gagged; gagging. The noun is 1550s, from the verb.

Example Sentences for gag

One kind of gag is attributable to failure of memory or deficiency of study on the part of the player.

He bade his men remove the gag from my mouth, and then addressed me.

Without asking questions, the sheriff handed Bob a knife and the ropes and gag were slashed.

I had to finally threaten to tie him up and gag him if he didn't stop.

Then he threw it aside, got down from the slab, and advanced toward Nick and Jarvis, removing his gag and bonds as he did so.

The poison story had been a gag to make him think he had outwitted Domber.

Through his gag, which she had loosened a bit, he made a peculiar, gurgling noise.

The glittering fisherlady could not bind and gag the bait and drop her into his mouth.

The merely physical side of this struggle between them was, of course, accentuated by the gag placed upon discussion.

He wanted to gag her so that she would hear him out for once and not break into every phrase.